Peru 2013

Olmos to Pucara

What a day!  Yes, the route card said 7,700 feet of climbing and 75 miles.  What a climb.  We started out with a gradual steady climb and by mile 15 we climbed in earnest.  We gained 5,000 feet in 17 miles with constant grades of 6-7%.  The scenery changed dramatically as we climbed and crossed the Andes at 6,700 feet, once of the lowest passes in the chain.  Yet it was the high point of the trip (literally).  We will have more climbing and more descents, but none will compare with this day.  Our downhill was dramatic, reaching speeds of 40+ mph with grades similar to the way up.  We descended for two hours to reach Pucara.  If there was a train here, this would be a whistle stop.

The landscape change from arid desert to semi-lush farms.  We saw a river with water in it flowing west.  That water never reached to coast, either because it was used for irrigation or the river simply dried up.  When we crossed the pass, the rivers flow east, all tributaries to the Amazon.

When I was flying down the mountain I really enjoyed the exhilaration of speed and freedom.  Then I hit the first speed bump on the descent at 27 mph.  I didn’t crash.  My tire didn’t flat and my rim didn’t dent.  I survived that event and vowed to be alert for speed bumps further down the road.  Then I reached for the brake lever and it “squished”.  So the use of the rear brake lever and right (rear derailleur) shifter was done gingerly for the remainder of the thirty+ miles of downhill.  When we reached the hotel, Lon Haldeman and Bob Olson engineered a repair which involved splitting a 70 mm tube and epoxying and bolting it to the cracked handlebar.  Two days after the patch is still holding and performing well.

Lodging in Pucara was the pits.  The reserved hotel had given out some of the rooms we had reserved and wanted us to triple and quadruple up.  We found an alternate hotel with communal showers, slanted floors, noisy guests and questionable plumbing.  Such is the adventure of riding through rural Peru and seeing life up close.

Share the road

The road ahead

Riders ahead

Grazing along the road

Share the Road

Typical Peruvian Pooch

Lon and Aracely

Peru 2013

Colan Beach to Chulucanas      81 miles     1,900 feet of climbing

We left our scenic accommodations at the Luna Nuevo Hotel after breakfast of eggs, oatmeal and melon juice.  I especially enjoyed the juice, not least because other riders gave me theirs.  The day started off cool and overcast and with a climb out of the beach to the bluffs and then back to Piura with its cacophony of horns, whistles and barking dogs.  Dogs in Peru seem to be much more independent and mostly unaffiliated with an owner, but presumably someone feeds them and some are very territorial.  Today we passed a dog sitting in a yard who didn’t bother to get up but barked at us nonetheless just to let us know it was his territory.  His enthusiasm for the task was lacking.

The weather cooperated with us all day.  We started with a coastal fog cover which kept temps cool.  Then we enjoyed Partly cloudy skies for a couple of hours.  Finally the sun came out for a while only to be replaced with threatening storm clouds.  A comfortable riding day.

We enjoyed a good lunch before leaving Piura.  Because we had sent the baggage truck ahead with lunch orders we didn’t have the typical interminable wait common in most small Peruvian towns.  Once we left town the traffic quieted and became the usual stream of a few jitneys, an occasional truck and an occasional “tourist bus”.  We began to see signs of the diminishing hold of the dry desert climate.  Many more trees were green, occasionally with fruit.  We saw small herds of goats, burros, and even cattle.  All appeared undernourished except the burros.  I guess they’ll eat anything.  The town of Chulucanas is a neat and tidy town with well paved and maintained roads.  This is rare in Peru.  Even in the capital city of Lima the roads are pock-marked with repairs, divots in the pavement and irregular surfaces.  Our hotel in Chulucanas features spare rooms and limited internet service.  On par with experience and expectations, if not hopes.

Here are some photos of our group and the “scenery” along our ride.

Gabrielle, Becky and Len

 

The road ahead - typical desert scenery

 Lunch along the road?

 

Burros are still used for transport

 

Gabrielle and Len outside our lunch spot

Peru 2013

Piura to Colon Beach                    44 miles              1,000 feet of climbing

Today it was about the bike.  After breakfast we assembled bikes, loaded the baggage truck and began riding.  We rode thru Piura heading for the beach, sharing the road with jitneys, buses, trucks and cars.  We were a spectacle, I’m sure, to people used to seeing bikes as transport vehicles with big racks in front or behind.   We all wore our PacTour Peru jerseys.  We fourteen riders stretched out a ways as we followed our baggage truck out of town.  Honks from trucks, whistles from the jitneys and cheers from people along the way filled our ears with the cacophony of Peru.  I really feel privileged to be able to partake in this adventure and to see the people and places of Peru so up close and personal.

As bike rides go, today was fairly boring.  The desert around Piura extends all the way to the ocean.  The little vegetation there is low and scrubby.  The dirt is powder dry.  The overcast sky of the morning allowed us comfortable riding temps.  Even with the afternoon sun breaking through the clouds a breeze off the ocean kept temps in a comfortable range.  The Colorado Condor (the bike I’m riding before turning it over to be used by a Peruvian cyclist) complained a bit before I was able to recognize the adjustments need to the derailleurs.  I rides well for such a heavy bike.

The big surprise of the day came after arriving at our hotel at the end of the ride.  Art, my roommate, greeted me with the question, “How do you feel about bunk beds?”  And then said, “Never mind.  Look at the view we have.”  He opened the door and my eye was drawn through the room to the Pacific Ocean.  What a view!

 

The riders

 

The Ladies

 

Colan Beach

 

Bob Olson - Bonvivant

 

 

 

The View

Peru 2013 Prologue

Peru 2013 – Prologue - Piura to Iquitos

After two days of travel and sightseeing in Lima, we’ve arrived in Piura.  Tomorrow we assemble bikes and begin our ride.  We’ll head for the ocean and an easy ride to tweak bikes and bodies. 

As the line goes, “We’re not in Kansas anymore, Toto.”  As I travelled from Chicago to Miami and Miami to Lima and Lima to Piura, the familiar ethnic mix of Irish, Italian, Polish, German, and English sure has changes.  Spanish, South American Indian and Asian all figure predominately in the mix.  Accents seem to me to be a hodge-podge of flavors.  The melting pot of American history has spread to South America.  The commercial world displays cars from around the world: Toyotas, Chevys, Kias, Cherys and on and on. 

Here are some images from the last two days:

Traveling with Bicycles

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                       Thea and Bruce

                                         Our Route                                     Aracely             

 

 

 

                                                                    Lovers

"Rainstorm - Day Three

Rainstorm - Day Three

                                 Today               So far

Vertical gain        4,600 Feet            13,600
Horizontal gain        88 miles                303

A great day for riding.  Cool temps, modest tailwind and sunshine with a threat of afternoon showers.

Day three started with a new route due west on smooth quiet roads.  We followed roads with no markings (no centerlines or shoulder lines for the first twenty miles of the ride.  When we switch to a road with a center line we occasionally see a car.  Such is the lack of traffic on most of the roads we use.  The bucolic scenes portrayed in the road photos are typical, rarely is a car in sight.  Even crossing intersecting roads we rarely have to stop for oncoming traffic.  I do show one busy road below, just to show the road we don't travel. 

We did get our thunderstorm before reaching our destination this afternoon.  We started out under a big oak tree in front of a farm house and as the storm grew more intense were waived into the barn by the local farmer.  Indiana hospitality is tops.  I've been given iced water bottles by complete strangers on hot summer afternoons and regaled with stories of family histories.  Good people these Hoosiers.

Here's today's pictures:

Generations of turkeys

Morning ride
 

Today's old barn

Quiet roads
 

White River - the draught is over

Pac Tour veterans David & spouse

History

The meeting house

Pac tour veterans Jim & Fran

Traffic on the interstate

Shortcut! Skip Scottsburg What would you do?





 

RAINSTORM Day Two

RAINSTORM - Day Two

                                       today                 so far

Vertical Gain              4,500 feet               9,000
Horizontal gain             100 miles                215

A touch of rain before the start damped pavement.  Skies like yesterday, threatening, partial clearing until it turned sunny and hot and very humid in the afternoon with temps in the high 90's.

 Another great day in the saddle.  More quiet, smooth roads and scenic vistas on our route all day long.  Riders were fatigued today from yesterday's marathon effort, but spirits were strong.

Morning fog

Folk Art

Climber

Serenity

Climbers

Barn quilt

Feeling good?  PC road naming?

Fisherman

RAINSTORM Day One

RainStorm - Day one

Vertical gain            4,500 feet
Horizontal Gain          115 miles
Humid with headwinds most of the day Sunny at times, rain threatened but never eventuated

Last night I joined this year's RainStorm riders for our pre ride Italian dinner.  It was great to see old riding partners, Gary Cohen, Rob Stewart and Jim VandeBogart.  Six time rider Bruce Noah, and four time riders Ross Snyder and Paul Hadley were there as well.  This is an easy group to travel with.

So the usual Monday morning routine played out today, hotel breakfast followed by the drive to
Earlham college for the start of the ride.  Ten minutes out of the college I realized why I keep signing up for this challenge.  The fellow travelers are fun to be with, the roads are chose to for their smooth surfaces, scenic views and lack of traffic.  Rolling through the Indiana countryside puts me in a state of bliss.  At least when I'm not struggling up one of those surprise 14% grades. 

Lots of site seeing today.  I am particularly a fan of local folk art proudly displayed in yards along the way.  Here are some photos from today's ride.

Scenic road - a typical scene

 

Rob

Isn't she  beautiful?

 

Whitewater Valley Railroade

A little history



The mansion

Railroad

Typical road scene

Social commentary

More railroad  Really a big toy train set

One more bucolic road scene

Day Eight

Day Eight

Day Seven

Day Seven